Eric Hess is a Renaissance man. A glass artist, Vice President of Hess Deynoodt Marketing, a gardener, and an interior designer at heart, Hess is always aware of the beauty that surrounds him.
So it isn’t surprising that he wears eye-catching tailored shirts from Italy that you can’t find at your neighborhood haberdashery.
“I discovered the shirts in Florence while on an extended trip of Italy,” he says. “I am always looking for something new and interesting, and when I stopped in clothing designer Andrea Palombini’s shop in the fashion district of Florence, it was love at first sight when I saw his amazing shirts. I purchased three shirts and by the time I got back to New Orleans, I knew I wanted more.”
Eric barely unpacked his bags before he ordered several more of Palombini’s shirts.
“I realized I had discovered something unique in the handsome shirts that were whimsical and sometimes playful, yet impeccably made of beautiful fine fabrics,” he continues. “Many of the shirts have square or oval-shaped buttons in various colors added in unusual places.
Sometimes there are three buttons on the collar and then a third button on the cuff, allowing you to button the cuff to expose a special fabric.”
Not a bargain wardrobe item, Eric didn’t flinch when he heard the price.
“The distinctive shirts come in a variety of fabrics, from fine silks to cotton, and are well worth the cost,” he says as he shows off other shirts in his collection. “People love that they have never seen a shirt like this before. They notice the large collars and the interesting buttons that are very different from the buttons you normally see on men’s shirts. Some of the bottoms have designs, like the ones on some of my shirts. I also find the ‘stand-up’ collar imaginative.” Then he hastens to add, “There are a few conservative styles, but most are colorful and a bit over the top, and I do have some shirts without ‘stand-up’ collars.”
Eric is currently gathering his impressive collection of glass sculptures for a show.
“I feel the sculptures are very much like my taste in Andrea Palombini’s shirts, created with a unique artist’s flair,” he says. “As an artist, I feel it is important to develop your own style and to be inventive.
I have always enjoyed creating or purchasing unique things that are unlike anything else you find in galleries or stores.”
The Bayou St. John home he shares with his partner, Frank Thaxton, a retired Shreveport judge, also reflects his imaginative style.
“We like spaces that are always distinctive and have a cutting-edge contemporary feeling. We are now working on our home on Cross Lake in Shreveport that is definitely going to be different.”
Eric and Frank love to travel and they both agree that their trip to Rome, Verona, Pisa, Lake Como, Milan, Venice, and Florence was one of their favorite vacations.
“Italy is a wonderful country and our trip was divine, but the most memorable part was discovering Andrea Palombini Collezioni in Florence. His shirts fit my style perfectly,” Eric says with a smile. “I am always assured that I will never look boring wearing one of Palombini’s magical shirts.”
